Meineke Canada Acquires 12 CAA Car Care Centres in Ontario

Meineke Canada, part of the Driven Brands family of automotive companies, has announced that it has purchased 12 CAA Car Care Centres formerly owned and operated by CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO).

The acquisition will allow Meineke to expand its presence in Canada as well as benefit from the best practices and technical expertise of the CAA brand. Three of these newly acquired locations will be owned and operated by Meineke Car Care Centre franchisee and hockey great Wendel Clark. Opening his first Meineke Car Care Centre in 2013, Clark and his partners guided the location to the honour of “Garage of the Year” as deemed by Service Station Garage Management (SSGM) in the same year. Two separate Meineke franchisees will purchase the remaining nine centres.

CAA had announced the sale late last year and a notification to CAA members has also been posted on the CAA site:

“As of February 3, 2014, all CAA Car Care Centres in South Central Ontario (with the exception of Peterborough) have been sold to Driven Brands. These locations will operate as Meineke Car Care Centres beginning February 4, 2014.

These new Meineke locations will honour all current, active warranties on parts and labour, as well as tire storage agreements and valid coupons. CAA Dollars earned at Car Care Centres are tied to membership accounts, and as such are not affected by the sale.

All vehicle repair and maintenance records will remain at the former CAA Car Care Centre location where customers last serviced their vehicles. This will allow Meineke to provide uninterrupted services . . .CAA is confident that they will continue to offer the level of quality service our customers have come to expect. The sale of the Car Care Centres will enable CAA to remain focused on the products and services our members value most, namely Roadside Assistance, Travel and Insurance.:

“At Meineke, we are committed to growing our presence through acquisitions of other brands or independents that can accelerate our exposure and growth,” said Duane Arbeau, vice president and general manager, Meineke Canada. “In addition to keen industry insights across Ontario, CAA has an excellent reputation and provides the type of quality customer service we value. We are excited about this addition to the Meineke family and are confident this acquisition will result in a win-win for both customers and our brand alike.”

“We would like to thank our Car Care customers for their support and patronage over the years,” said Cindy Hillaby, vice-president of Membership and Automotive Services, CAA SCO. “We are confident Meineke will continue to offer the same level of service our customers have come to expect.”

Throughout the next few months, Meineke will work to integrate CAA SCO and the existing Meineke locations in Ontario. Upon completion of these efforts, Meineke will have a total of 50 Centres in Canada.

“We look forward to expanding our trademark expertise in car care and maintenance in Canada and we’re excited about all of the ways this growth will allow us to help our customers Drive a little smarter,” adds Arbeau.

Meineke owner Driven Brands is headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., and operates as separate businesse Maaco North America’s Body Shop; Meineke Car Care Centers; Econo Lube ‘N Tune; AutoQual, Aero-Colours and Drive N Style.